The biggest problem for Nadal is that his destiny is not in his own hands here. If Gulbis or Soderling play well, Nadal will get blown off the court. Period. On fast courts, we've seen how vulnerable he is, and even on the slow clay of Rome Gulbis nearly beat him with sheer weight of shot. That said, if they aren't playing well he can tie one hand behind his back and still win, because they'll just lose against themselves by making a billion errors.

I think Soderling is very well placed to make another final here. If he plays well, there's really nobody who can trouble him in that side of the draw. Nadal and Murray are both too defensive and will have to hope that he implodes, because they certainly can't out-hit him.

On the other side of the draw...Federer or Berdych will reach the final I believe. Roddick was looking good, but he played incredibly poorly at Queen's, and he's played all of five matches in the past three months, so he's definitely as sharp as he needs to be. Djokovic is playing too poorly and I don't think Hewitt's body will hold up.

So Fed-Soderling or Berdych-Soderling final i'd say. Probably Fed to win.

Nicely put together, Era. I don't think Nadal will get pushed around like last year, because he's hitting with so much more penetration recently. I do still however agree that opponents such as Soderling and Del Potro {when on} are just too much for him. I would assume that Rafa could take a set in a BO:5 against these big hitters.

As for Federer.. after reading his recent comments, I am having a better feeling for him.

My feelings or A-Rod, I can't really describe- it seems to me that Roddick has a good shot this time around.

As much as I'd like for Roddick to have another shot at Wimbledon, I don't think this is his year. He was stupid in his preparation for the tournament. I get that he hates clay, but even if you get creamed every single time, just GET OUT on the court and get some play time in. Now he's faced with a situation where he's played almost no tennis for three months going into the most important tournament of the year. He should have taken a wild card at Eastbourne.

Probably he'll get Federer in the semi's, and probably he'll get killed. I think the problem last year was that Federer went into the finalh thinking he was going to cruise, really underestimating Roddick. This time around he'll be ready, and if Federer's in the semis, it means he's beat Berdych, so he'll be sharp as tacks. Just don't see it happening for Roddick in 2010, at least not here. Maybe at the US Open, by which time Nadal will be burnt out, Potro still won't be back and Federer's interest level might not be peaking. Who knows?

Era, Gulbis pulled out of Wimbledon this year. As for Soderling, I don't think he's an efficient enough mover to go far in the second week at a grass court tournament. I think Roddick may beat Federer in the semis. Nadal-Roddick final perhaps? That would be very interesting...

"The depressing thing about tennis is that no matter how good I get, I’ll never be as good as a wall."

"Whoever said, ‘It’s not whether you win or lose that counts,’ probably lost."

I like Nadal's chances his grass game is good even against tall flat hitters as he's proven in the past and he's in Federer's head for sure. Gulbis is hilariously inconsistent by the way so saying he has what it takes to beat Nadal is laughable.

I like Nadal's chances his grass game is good even against tall flat hitters as he's proven in the past and he's in Federer's head for sure. Gulbis is hilariously inconsistent by the way so saying he has what it takes to beat Nadal is laughable.

Actually, what's laughable is your blatant lack of knowledge. Gulbis nearly beat Nadal 2 years ago at Wimbledon, and he wasn't nearly as good as he is now. In Rome, just a few weeks ago, he also very nearly beat Nadal, on the slow clay courts of Rome. He would have murdered him had they met, and Nadal is super lucky that Gulbis withdrew.

Actually, what's laughable is your blatant lack of knowledge. Gulbis nearly beat Nadal 2 years ago at Wimbledon, and he wasn't nearly as good as he is now. In Rome, just a few weeks ago, he also very nearly beat Nadal, on the slow clay courts of Rome. He would have murdered him had they met, and Nadal is super lucky that Gulbis withdrew.

Let's not be hasty to mark Gulbis as a huge threat. Nadal has a 3-0 record over Gulbis. And, there is a BIG difference between beating the likes of Nadal, Federer, Murray in 5-setters as opposed to the normal 3-setters. If Gulbis has been unable to beat Rafa in 3 sets then it's even harder to beat him in 5. Plus, Gulbis is an arrogant twat who doesn't have the composure to last 5 sets vs Nadal.

"The depressing thing about tennis is that no matter how good I get, I’ll never be as good as a wall."

"Whoever said, ‘It’s not whether you win or lose that counts,’ probably lost."

Nadal had beaten Gulbis, Soderling, and even Berdych in the past few years at wimbledon. You can argue that they all have improved but so has Nadal. Gulbis playing one good match on clay and still losing just shows that even when his game is on he still can't beat Nadal. And saying that taking a set off him in a best of five is "nearly beating Nadal" is even funnier than Gulbis' hair.